Reports of damage and minor injuries are emerging out of Russia following the 8.8-magnitude earthquake and tsunami.
Oleg Melnikov, head of the regional health department in Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula, said a few people hurt themselves while rushing to leave buildings and a hospital patient received an injury while jumping out of a window. Melnikov said that all injured people were in satisfactory condition.
Russian authorities declared a state of emergency on the Kuril Islands and in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the main city on the Kamchatka peninsula.
They earlier reported that several tsunami waves flooded the fishing port of Severo-Kurilsk, the main city on the islands, and cut power supplies to the area. Russia’s Oceanography Institute said tsunami waves that hit the city topped 19 feet.
Severo-Kurilsk Mayor Alexander Ovsyannikov said the city was flooded by four tsunami waves, which washed fishing boats into the sea, but no major damage was recorded in the city.
In Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Kamchatka’s regional capital, the quake damaged a local kindergarten, which was not in operation due to ongoing repair work.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Klyuchevskoy volcano in Russia’s Far East is erupting Wednesday following the 8.8-magnitude earthquake in the region, reports said.
“A descent of burning hot lava is observed on the western slope. Powerful glow above the volcano, explosions,” Reuters cited the Russian Academy of Sciences’ United Geophysical Service as saying.
A woman reportedly died in Japan while evacuating from the tsunami.
The 58-year-old was killed when the car she was traveling in fell off a cliff in central Japan’s Mie prefecture, Reuters reported, citing Asahi TV.
Workers in Japan also fled from the Fukushima nuclear plant, where a meltdown occurred in 2011 following a tsunami there, according to Reuters.
However, the news agency reported Wednesday that there were no irregularities at any of Japan’s nuclear plants.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday that after speaking with Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, “the evacuation order has been lifted for coastal inundation zones.
“Please be careful be careful when returning and watch out for damage. We will continue to monitor in Hawaii, Alaska, and California,” she added.
As of around 5 a.m. local time, a small portion of Northern California that borders Oregon remains under a tsunami warning.
“If you are located in this coastal area, move inland to higher ground,” the National Weather Service said. “The tsunami warning will remain in effect until further notice.”
The National Weather Service’s Office in Eureka, Calif., said Wednesday that “Tsunami activity is continuing to build this morning as we approach the 4 AM minor high tide.”
The office confirmed maximum wave heights so far of 3.6 feet in Crescent City, 3 feet in Arena Cove and 1.2 feet in Humboldt Bay.“
Continue to avoid beaches and harbors as tsunami activity will persist,” it added in a post on X.
Earlier in the morning, the office said the “highest risk of inundation is directed toward Crescent City, where 3-5 foot maximum tsunami waves are expected” and that “Humboldt County is expected to have 1-2 foot maximum tsunami waves.”
A video captured a team of Russian doctors holding onto a patient as they were performing surgery when the 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck.
Footage taken in the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in Russia’s Far East shows the doctors clutching a table that was shaking inside an operating room.
The video was posted to social media by Oleg Melnikov, the regional minister of health in Kamchatka Krai, according to Storyful.
He reportedly praised the doctors working on the cancer patient, calling them “heroes in white coats.”
Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov added that the doctors would be given awards for their courage and dedication, Storyful also reported.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center late Tuesday downgraded a tsunami warning in Hawaii to a “tsunami advisory” officials said.
The PTWC says it is continuing to monitor data to update its forecast and for an “all clear” that they may issue later on, Maj. Gen. Stephen Logan said at a press conference shared by the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.
An advisory means the potential for strong currents or dangerous waves are expected or are occurring for those in or near the water, Logan said.
Those who have evacuated may return home based on country assessments and directives.
The earthquake off the coast of Russia is tied for the sixth strongest ever recorded, FOX Weather has confirmed.
Tsunami waves have been recorded in America’s 50th state, starting around 2:00 a.m. ET Wednesday — it took around 6 hours for them to travel from the earthquake epicenter to the Hawaiian Islands, and they are expected to wane gradually later in the day.
The highest waves so far include 5.7 feet in Kahului, Hawaii, 4.9 feet in Hilo, Hawaii, 4 feet in Haleiwa, Hawaii, and 3 feet in Hanalei, Hawaii.
Tsunami waves were recorded along the nation’s West Coast at about 3:50 a.m. ET today. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center only expects minor impacts for the Southern California and Washington Coasts, placing the region under a Tsunami Advisory.
The exception to this will be the Northern California Coast and Southern Oregon Coast, specifically around and near Crescent City, Calif. This region could see waves as high as 4-5 feet, which has prompted a Tsunami Warning. These waves are forecast to wane later today,
FOX Weather’s Jordan Overton contributed to this report
The small Crescent City in Northern California turned on its tsunami sirens late Tuesday evening to warn the population of roughly 6,000 residents about possible waves following an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off Russia’s coast.
“You are hearing a Tsunami Siren. We are under a Tsunami Warning. Please stay away from beaches and waterways. A predicted wave may hit at 11:55 pm. We are waiting on additional information about any level of evacuation,” City Hall wrote on Facebook.
In 1964, a tsunami caused by an earthquake in Alaska triggered a wave reaching 21 feet high to strike the city, killing 11 people and destroying its downtown area.
The National Weather Service in Eureka, California, said the first tsunami waves are “beginning to impact the coast, with clear waves being recorded at the Crescent City and Humboldt Bay tide gauges.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
An evacuation warning has been issued for residents North of Butte Drive and Nevada Court in Los Osos, California due to recent Tsunami activity the Pacific.
The Tsunami advisory was issued by the National Weather Service following a massive 8.8 earthquake off the coast of Russia and includes the entire West Coast of the U.S.
Officials are continuing to monitor ocean activity.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green spoke at a tsunami warning press conference on Tuesday evening as the state braced for potential impact stemming from a massive earthquake that erupted in Russia.
“So far, we have not seen a wave of consequence, which is great relief to us,” Green said shortly after 8 p.m. on Tuesday.
He said officials have seen “significant” water recede and there have been two larger waves recorded, the biggest one measuring 6 feet total from trough to peak.
The governor also said there hasn’t been any wave activity recorded near the big island.
“So far, so good,” Green said.
Though the update was positive, Green said officials are still about two or three hours away from calling off the state’s tsunami warning and declaring it all clear.
Officials in the Philippines warned provinces and towns along the archipelago’s eastern coast facing the Pacific of possible tsunami waves after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off Russia’s east coast.
Philippine officials said wave heights of about 3 feet could reach between 1:20 p.m. to 2:40 p.m. local time. Residents are urged to stay away from the beach and coastal areas.
“It may not be the largest of waves, but these can continue for hours and expose people swimming in the waters to danger,” said Teresito Bacolcol of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Oregon Department of Emergency Management said small tsunami waves with heights between one to two feet were expected to reach parts of the state’s coastline late Tuesday night.
The waves were expected to reach the state starting at around 11:40 p.m. local time, the department wrote on Facebook. Oregon is under a tsunami advisory, along with much of the U.S. West Coast, including Washington state and California.
People are urged to stay away from beaches, harbors and marinas and to remain in a safe space away from the coast until the tsunami advisory is lifted.
“This is not a major tsunami, but dangerous currents and strong waves may pose a risk to those near the water,” the department wrote.
A tsunami triggered by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake off the east coast of Russia reached Hawaii on Tuesday evening.
Residents had been urged to evacuate to higher ground amid the tsunami warning.
“Take Action NOW! Tsunami waves are currently impacting Hawaii,” the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said on X.
State officials warned wave height amplitudes were expected to reach three feet, or six feet from top to bottom, according to FOX Weather.
The earthquake off Russia’s eastern Kamchatka Peninsula that triggered tsunami waves and prompted evacuation orders across the Pacific on Wednesday was the strongest earthquake in more than 14 years.
On Wednesday morning, the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 8.0, Japan and U.S. seismologists said before the U.S. Geological Survey later updated its measurement to 8.8 magnitude.
The earthquake appears to be the strongest anywhere in the world since March 2011, when a 9.0 magnitude earthquake off northeast Japan caused a massive tsunami that set off meltdowns at a nuclear power plant.
Only a few earthquakes measured around the world have been stronger.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Tsunami waves arrived on the eastern coast of Japan on Wednesday following a powerful earthquake off Russia on Tuesday evening, which left several people injured.
The 8.8 magnitude quake triggered fears of a tsunami across much of the Pacific Ocean basin, including the shores of Hawaii, southern Alaska, the entire U.S. West Coast and British Columbia.
Much of Japan’s eastern seaboard was ordered to evacuate ahead of the tsunami’s arrival.
As of early Wednesday morning, tsunami warnings are in effect for Hawaii and parts of Alaska and the U.S. West Coast, while British Columbia is under a Tsunami advisory after the earthquake struck just east of Petropavlovsk, Russia, according to FOX Weather.
China’s Ministry of Natural Resources’ Tsunami Warning Center issued an alert on Wednesday for parts of the country’s east coast along Shanghai and Zhejiang provinces.
The waves could reach between 1 to 3 feet, according to forecasts.
Shanghai and Zhejiang are already under alert as Typhoon CoMay is expected to land in the Zhejiang province on Wednesday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
